Unsorted
by goodbye world
Summary: After the war, prejudice is still the norm. Bloodlines are traced. Anyone related to war heroes is idolized while families and friends of Death Eaters are persecuted. How will an unlikely group of first years respond to this adversity?
1. Chapter 1

**Read and Review, please! I hope you like it. If so, tell me in a review. If not, tell me that, too.**

…

Rose jumped on the Hogwarts Express just as it began to pull away, Albus at her side. Her father had gotten all emotional and refused to release her from his hug until the last possible moment. She could still see him crying as they raced off into the distance. She smiled. Freedom at last! She loved her family and all, but sometimes they could be a bit over-the-top. Not that it was their fault. They were war heroes, after all. She just wanted to become her own person. And now she had seven years away from home to do that.

She and Al went off to look for an empty compartment. The only issue: there weren't any. They all had five or six people already. Curse her father and his long goodbyes… Not that they couldn't have gotten a compartment. Some people would have been more than happy to move for the offspring of the Golden Trio. But she and Al refused on principle. And she had been so looking forward to a life free of the family legacy…

They had reached the end of the train, and peered into the final compartment. Only three kids who looked to be about their own age. A lucky find. It was probably the only compartment with room enough for both her and Al.

There was only one problem: sitting by the window was the platinum blond, stormy-eyed Scorpius Malfoy. "Come on, Rosie," Al said, turning around. "I bet we can squeeze in with James and his friends."

"But Al, he's already got seven people in there! And, honestly, do you _want_ to sit with him?"

"Well, no, but dad said…" Al looked unsure. He was always worried about impressing his father and living up to the legacy.

"Oh, come on. I don't want to walk all the way back up the train and neither do you. If it makes you feel any better, it's not like you actually have to talk to him." And with that, Rose pulled open the compartment door and asked sweetly, "Do you all mind if my cousin and I sit here?"

The girl, small with long black hair and big glasses, shook her head and the boy, lanky with brown curls, shrugged. Malfoy just looked out the window. Rose looked back and nodded at Al, sitting herself down next to the girl. Al followed reluctantly, placing himself next to her.

"Hi, I'm Rose Weasley, and this is Albus Potter, my cousin," she said, extending her hand.

All three stared. "You're the Golden Trio's kids," the brown-haired boy said. She sighed. It was not a question. "Are you sure you want to sit here?"

"Why wouldn't we?" Rose asked.

The three exchanged glances. The girl spoke up. "Well, it's just… I'm Helena Nott, that's Will Avery, and that's Scorpius Malfoy."

"So?"

Scorpius glared. "So, we're Death Eater's kids. Why do you think we're sitting alone? No one wants to be associated." The other two nodded.

"Well, I don't care," Rose declared. "And neither does Albus." She looked at Albus, who had been quiet the whole time. He paled, but nodded.

The three children seemed dumbfounded. "Anyone for Exploding Snap?" Albus asked to break the silence, getting out his cards.

Will smiled. "Oh, I'm the master at this. Prepare to lose, Potter!" He got out his own deck.

"Will's very competitive," Helena said quietly.

Rose laughed. "I can tell. Albus is undefeated in our family, though."

They settled in to watch the game. Will won quickly. "Your family must not be very good at Exploding Snap," Scorpius remarked.

Rose grinned. "I can't say that we are."

Al, his eyebrows slightly singed, demanded a rematch. Will complied.

oOo

After getting off their boats, the first years filed up to the Great Hall, where Uncle Neville lined them up in alphabetical order. Rose was separated from her new-found friends. Will went to the very front of the line, Scorpius, Helena, and Al stood together in the middle, and Rose acted as the caboose.

And then the doors to the Great Hall opened and they all walked in. Rose held herself tall as she felt the stares descend upon her. Whispers erupted around the Great Hall, not just about her. She heard "Death Eaters" as often as "Golden Trio," and all of her friends names circulated the room with her own. She felt her cheeks color. How could these people already be judging her before they even knew her? She had looked forward to Hogwarts as a sanctuary from this kind of people, but, apparently, she had been wrong. Well. She'd just have to prove to all of them that she wasn't her parents.

The Sorting Hat began its song soon after she had decided this. And then it was time for the fateful sortings.

"Avery, William," called Uncle Neville from the front of the Hall.

Will walked to the front and sat on the stool, settling the hat upon his head. It deliberated for a while before calling out, quite loudly, "GRYFFINDOR!"

Silence. No one clapped. Then Albus brought his hands together, and Rose, Scorpius, and Helena joined. No one else in the Great Hall clapped. Even the Professors' table was silent. She smiled at Will as he made his way to the Gryffindor table, flashing him a thumbs-up. He grinned back. Some members of her family, all at the Gryffindor table, caught the exchange and frowned.

But by then the next sorting had begun and Rose's eyes were drawn back to the front of the room. "HUFFLEPUFF!" the Hat cried, and the applause was full this time. Rose frowned slightly. _Not fair_, she thought. _It's not fair_.

No one else seemed to notice or care. And soon enough, she heard, "Malfoy, Scorpius" called up for his sorting. The Hat took less time than it had for Will, but longer than for anyone since before it called out, "RAVENCLAW!"

Rose clapped first this time, quite loudly, along with three other people. Whispers erupted throughout the Hall.

And then it was, "Nott, Helena," and the Sorting Hat was placed on her head. It was there hardly at all before it called out, "HUFFLEPUFF!" More whispers, even some glares, and the sound of four people clapping.

When the Sorting Hat was placed on Albus's head next, it took quite a while before deciding, and called out a loud, "SLYTHERIN!"

Utter silence, until a certain four first years began to clap. This time, however, the whole school joined in, for he was a Potter and thus had their respect. When Rose glanced towards the Gryffindor table, the sea of Weasleys looked positively aghast. But they clapped nonetheless.

This made Rose angry. None of these people knew or accepted any of them. Her friends were very nice and did not deserve to be alienated. And she and Albus had done nothing to earn the pedestal they were put upon. Why did it have to be this way? She looked at the Hufflepuff table and saw Helena, sweet, quiet Helena, hunched over, alone in the crowd. Weren't Hufflepuffs supposed to be kind and accepting? And Scorpius, at the Ravenclaw table, excluded from conversations and ignored. Shouldn't Ravenclaws have been smarter than that? Will at the Gryffindor table stared at his hands, pretending he didn't care that no one would even look at him. Gryffindors, the heroic ones, her own _family_, would alienate people like this. Albus held his head high at the Slytherin table though everyone only cast him wary looks and ignored him. Even the House everyone hated would behave in this manner.

It was unacceptable. Rose was positively livid by the time Professor Longbottom called the last name, "Wealsey, Rose." As the Sorting Hat was settled on her head, all she could think was that she didn't want to be sorted, didn't want to participate in this corrupt system. If all the Houses could be so awful, she wanted no part of any of them.

_Are you sure?_

Rose jumped as the Sorting Hat spoke in her mind, but her resolve didn't waver._ Completely_, she replied. _I don't want to be in the same House with any of those prejudiced idiots. No way._

_You've got the brains for Ravenclaw, certainly. You would be great in that House. You could learn so many things, be the brightest witch of the age, _the Sorting Hat said, trying to tempt her_. You could be brilliant,and—_

_No, _Rose replied firmly, Scorpius in her mind

_Slytherin, then. You've got the ambition and cunning. _The Sorting Hat's voice was seductive_. Slytherin would lead you to great things—_

Rose gave a mental negative, thinking of Albus.

_Well, you've certainly got the loyalty for Hufflepuff, _it attempted to convince her_, you've proven that already. Hufflepuff is like a family for the—_

_Family? _Rose thought derisively._ Is that why they've welcomed Helena so warmly? No._

_Gryffindor, definitely, _the Sorting Hat seemed to plead._ All your family is there. You would be warmly accepted, loved. You would belong._

Rose bit her lip but refused_. They're still prejudiced and I won't be a part of any of it. No. That's final._

_All right, then, _the Sorting Hat thought to her, _I've been waiting for one like you for centuries_. Before she had time to figure out what that meant, the hat called out, "UNSORTED!"

Rose removed the Sorting Hat from her head and looked around the Great Hall. Everyone, even the professors stared at her, dumbfounded. She smiled slightly.

And then the whole scene dissolved into pandemonium.


	2. Chapter 2

After everyone had stopped yelling and Headmistress McGonagall had had a serious talk with the Sorting Hat, a table was conjured up for Rose and the feast began. Several furtive glances were directed her way but she ignored them and ate her food.

Now, after the heat of her anger was gone, she was beginning to wonder what on earth she had done. Sure, the system was extremely corrupt, but now she would have to spend the next seven years alone, unsorted. Where would she live? When would she attend classes? What about Quidditch Teams, and the House Cup, and just _everything_? There was no precedent for this.

No, she thought. She wouldn't doubt herself. If no one rebels against a flawed system, it will never change. And this needed to change. She couldn't bear seeing her friends, or _anyone_, so alone because of stupid, outdated prejudices. Even if she was completely alone, she would fix this.

When the feast was finished and everyone began to leave the Great Hall with their respective Houses, Rose stood up and looked around, unsure of what to do. Then Headmistress McGonagall caught her eye and beckoned her up to the Professors' table. Rose lifted her chin and walked up confidently, back straight. She would not show any doubts to these people, especially when she recalled their silence during the sortings of three of her friends. She looked defiantly at the Headmistress, daring her to question the sorting.

She did not. Instead, McGonagall said, "The Sorting Hat claims that you chose to be Unsorted." It was almost a question.

"I did," Rose answered simply. The other Professors looked slightly taken aback but McGonagall simply looked resigned.

"All right," she said. "For now, we'll settle you in the Room of Requirement. That will provide necessary accommodations. Professor Longbottom should be able to show you the way," she gestured at "Uncle Neville," as Rose had always known him. She shied away from the term of endearment as she thought of his, along with all the other Professors', silence during her friends' sortings. He nodded and began to lead her away.

Rose followed Neville through the castle, ascending to the seventh floor until he stopped in a corridor quite suddenly. "Professor Longbottom?" she asked. "Are we there?" She looked around, but there were no doors anywhere in the corridor.

He did not answer her question, but instead asked, "Why did you do it, Rosie?"

"Do what? You mean not get sorted?" She shrugged. "It's a corrupt system and I don't want to be in any of the Houses when they can all treat people so badly. Someone needs to stand up for people when everyone else is just content to persecute them. I'm not going to cave to the pressure and join in with the kind of people who participate in this kind of mindless bullying."

Neville blinked.

"So? Where is this Room of Requirement?"

"Ah, um, yes. Just walk past this stretch of wall three times while thinking of a dormitory for yourself and it will appear."

Rose turned to the wall. "Right, thanks. I'll be fine from here." She followed his instructions and disappeared into the Room of Requirement when it appeared, not bothering to see if he had left or not.

As soon as the door was closed, she sank to the floor. That had been difficult! She'd known Neville all her life, but she couldn't be familiar with him now. Not after his behavior during the sortings. He was, at the very best, a bystander to the bullying that some innocent eleven-year-olds were put through just because of their parents' actions almost twenty years ago. Every last professor was the same! She couldn't believe it. These people were supposed to be accepting. She had expected to come here, Hogwarts, and finally be free of prejudices and baseless judgments. But it was worse, because now she could see the other end of the spectrum. She had always resented being idolized by people who didn't even know her. But these other children… they had to deal with hatred from all these people. Tears sprang into her eyes at the thought of sweet Helena, cheerful Will, and brilliant Scorpius, victims of persecution. She no longer felt badly about her behavior to Neville—no, Professor Longbottom—because her was in the wrong.

She sighed, still feeling alone, but she was old enough to know that she was right. She held on to that as she stood up, exhausted and ready to sleep. Now that she looked around the dormitory, she realized that is was absolutely beautiful. It wasn't particularly grand, as she imagined the other House dorms were, just a single room and a door (which she assumed led to the bathroom). Everything was white. Instead of looking boring, it appeared clean and bright and open. There was a fireplace and a pair of comfy-looking, cream-colored chairs. She also had a whitewashed desk and chair, and a bed with a white, lacy spread. Her trunk sat at its foot. She quickly opened it, put on some pajamas, and passed out on the bed.

oOo

She woke up early, got dressed, grabbed something for breakfast, and received her class schedule, which appeared rather normal despite her lack of House. Even though she was awake before most people, she still drew several stares. She was the Unsorted one, with the white tie and no House.

She was about to walk out of the Great Hall when Albus came in. She waved and walked over. As she neared, she noted his appearance. His eyes were bloodshot, his hair messier than usual, and his glasses were spellotaped in the center. She frowned. "What happened to you, Al?"

He colored slightly and looked down. "Slytherin happened."

Her frown deepened. This was _not_ okay. "Hey, give me your glasses," she said, holding out her hand. He took them off as she pulled out her wand. "_Reparo_," she said the spell her mother had taught her, and removed the spellotape. "Let's get you something to eat." She grabbed his hand and dragged him over to the food. While he ate, they compared schedules. They had Transfiguration, Muggle Studies, and Potions together. She smiled. Well, they would be together in two of the classes at least. And she could get a look at the other Slytherin first-years, and perhaps kill them if she got the chance.

At that moment, Helena scurried in, quickly grabbed a roll to eat and collected her schedule. She was almost out the door again by the time Rose and Al caught up with her. "Hey, what's the rush?" Albus asked.

Helena smiled slightly and looked like she was about to answer when some other Hufflepuff first-years walked in. "Oh, look, it's that girl. You know her family's all murderers, right? If you don't watch out she'll curse you." They laughed as Helena blushed and looked down, tears springing into her eyes.

Rose made to move towards them, but Albus grabbed her sleeve. "It's not worth it, Rose. You don't want to get into trouble on the first day." Helena nodded in agreement. Rose glared at the Hufflepuffs but stayed where she was.

Scorpius and Will came in together before she could do anything more. They greeted each other, all looking a little worse for the wear but still happy to see their friends. They didn't talk about their ordeals in their respective Houses and no one questioned Rose's white tie. After comparing schedules and eating breakfast, they split up to prepare for classes, agreeing to meet up in the Entrance Hall in half an hour.

oOo

Rose was the first one back down, after sprinting to the Room of Requirement and back, schoolbooks in tow. She had Charms, Herbology, Muggle Studies (which was now compulsory), and Transfiguration today. She heard the whispers behind her back, saw the stares when people thought she wasn't looking. She held herself tall and pretended not to notice.

And then: "Rosie?" She looked around to find Dominique and Lucy, ties striped scarlet and gold for Gryffindor, moving towards her. Her older cousins were third-years. "What happened last night?" Dominique asked.

Rose looked up at her and said simply, "I got Unsorted."

Dominique looked down at her pityingly. "It was probably a mistake. I bet if you talked to McGonagall she'd put you in Gryffindor. It'll be all right." She put a comforting hand on Rose's shoulder.

Rose stepped back, and the hand fell. "It _is_ all right. I don't want to be in Gryffindor. It wasn't a mistake. I chose to be Unsorted."

Dominique and Lucy stared at their younger cousin, taken aback. "Why?"

As Lucy asked, Will came down the stairs, some Gryffindor boys harassing him and pushing him around. James was among them.

"That's why," Rose said as Will reached the bottom of the stairs. One of the Gryffindors knocked his books from his arms. They all laughed as he bent over to pick them up.

Rose started towards them, but Dominique grabbed her arm, stopping her. "Rose! What are you doing? He's a Death Eater's child!"

Rose jerked her arm away. "So? He's not a Death Eater, and the war's been over for almost twenty years."

"But his family—" Lucy began.

"Is his family. This is exactly why I wasn't sorted. I don't want to be a part of this. It's wrong." She turned to go help Will, but the Gryffindor boys had already moved on. She aimed a glare at James's back before helping Will up.

The others came down soon after, and they had time to walk out to the lake for half an hour before classes started. It was fun, and they were all in good moods again by the time they reentered the castle. They parted ways, Scorpius, Helena, and Rose to Charms, and Albus and Will to History of Magic.

When they got to class, Scorpius, Helena, and Rose stood around in the center of the classroom with the others, waiting for further instruction. The other students in the class—Hufflepuffs and Ravenclaws—whispered and shot glances at them, but they hardly noticed, because they had each other and that was enough for the time being. They were not alone. And then class began.

The professor, a pretty Asian woman with long black hair who looked about her parents' age, introduced herself as Professor Chang and announced that students could sit anywhere they wanted. Everyone smiled happily at their friends. Rose, Scorpius, and Helena chose seats near the front. Professor Chang frowned when she saw this. "Mr. Malfoy, please move to the empty seat in the back. And Miss Nott, you may move to that desk," she gestured to the far left side of the room.

The three looked at each other but Scorpius and Helena reluctantly picked up their things. Rose scowled. "Excuse me, but Professor Chang, didn't you just say that we could sit anywhere we chose?" she inquired.

Professor Chang turned to her and frowned. "I won't take your cheek Miss Weasley. Five points from—" she cut off, not sure where to deduct points from. She shook her head and continued. "I will place problem students myself to conserve order in the classroom."

Rose stared at her. "But how can you know that they're problem students? We haven't even begun with classes!"

"Rose," Scorpius began, attempting to prevent her from losing status because of him.

"Detention, Miss Weasley. And Mr. Malfoy can join you." She turned smugly to the rest of the class to begin instruction.

"Sorry," she mouthed at Scorpius, but he just grinned and shrugged, like it didn't matter. He and Helena switched to their new seats.

oOo

The rest of the classes that day were much the same. The group skipped dinner altogether, instead opting to visit the kitchens for food. They talked and laughed as they ate. The warm atmosphere was comforting, a nice break from the stark atmosphere of the day. They all regaled each other upon the horrors of the first day of classes. Professor Creevey of Defense Against the Dark Arts had given Will a detention for not knowing how to fend off a hinkypunk, even though no one else knew either. Helena had gotten her Potions book stolen by some fourth years, and she lost fifteen points for not having it in class. Albus had nearly gotten into a fight with some fifth years—fifth years!—for talking badly about the "Death Eaters' kids". And, of course, there had been the whispers and the stares all day.

It was almost eight o'clock before they reluctantly went to their respective dorms, not wanting to break curfew.

The next weeks and months were much the same. They either ate meals at Rose's Unsorted table in the Great Hall or in the kitchens. They stuck together when they could, but they still had to part ways every night and spend hours alone with their dorm mates (or, in Rose's case, just alone). There was still bullying and prejudice: their things were stolen, they were constantly victims of insults, and none of their peers would speak to them. This was bearable.

But then there were the teachers… Rose still couldn't believe that adults could be so awful. The five of them received detention at least once a week, constantly lost House Points, and had little freedom. Rose thought it was the worst for Scorpius. He knew the answer to every question, and always raised his hand, but was never called upon by any teacher. It must have been incredibly frustrating. And they were all given lower grades on assignments and tests than they thought they deserved. Scorpius and Rose had levitated feathers in Charms before anyone else in the class, and yet they were given failing or barely passing grades! All the other classes were similar stories.

Finally, one day in early November, Rose gave an aggravated huff as she received her grade on an essay in Transfiguration. She'd spent hours writing and researching, and yet she got a 64 percent! Albus fared worse, however, with his 31 percent. That night after dinner, as the children sat around in the Room of Requirement (Rose had configured it into a recreation room for the time being), she announced suddenly, "This has got to change."

They all looked at her, somewhat used to her passionate overreactions. But this time she was serious! "What has got to change, Rose?" Scorpius asked mildly, quirking an eyebrow.

"This… situation. I'm tired of the teachers failing us for no reason and spending every other day in detention. I really don't want to be put in remedial classes when I don't need it! We don't deserve this!"

The rest looked somewhat wistful. "Well, yeah, but how do you expect to change it?" Albus asked. "It's not like we can confront the teachers. They'd just deny it outright."

Rose sighed. "I know. So we'll just have to be better. We've got to do everything right. We've got to be so amazing in classes that they can't help but give us the grades we deserve. We've got to earn their respect before they'll give in."

They exchanged glances and Rose wondered what was passing between their eyes but didn't ask. Will sighed. "I suppose we have no choice. We'll have to actually study." Then he grinned. "But I'm glad that we'll actually be doing something about it." They smiled, too, and then began to work. Hard.

From then on, they convened in the Room of Requirement (which transformed into their own library/study area) every time they had a free moment. Rose and Scorpius acted as the resident tutors, helping the others when they could. When the teachers requested a two-foot research paper, they would write four, pooling knowledge and resources to make them accurate and well-written. When assigned charms and incantations to practice, they did so exhaustively until they could perform the spells flawlessly. The students read ahead in their textbooks so that they knew the material beforehand and would not mess up in class.

During classes, they always sat up straight (Rose's idea), looked alert, and raised their hands to answer questions. They never spoke out of turn, never broke curfew, never did anything wrong. Even when provoked, they never fought back. Never.

Yet they still ended up en detention weekly and the best grade any of them ever received was an Acceptable. It was always, "Your potion isn't pale enough" (even though it was an almost sheer pearl color and the other students' potions, which received higher marks, were quite pink at best) or, "This should be a semicolon, not a period. That's dreadful," or Rose's personal favorite: "I don't like the quirk of your eyebrow. Detention."

It was late December before Rose stood up in the middle of one of their study sessions. "This isn't working. We deserve better than this, and even though we're the best students by far in any of those classes, we're failing! What's the point! They're not going to see our side."

There was a pause before Helena looked up at her and said, "Yes, but we all knew that from the start. We were just waiting for you to catch on."

Rose blinked. "Oh." She looked slightly deflated.

Then Albus grinned. "That doesn't mean we have to stop, though. We know the material better than anyone else. Who cares if we're failing? We've still learned more than anyone else in our year."

Scorpius nodded. "Yes, let's not stop. I don't care about grades. I just want to learn everything I need to know."

Will sighed at the prospect of studying more, but he and Helena nodded, too.

Rose sat down. "Okay. Well, I guess we'll just continue the same way we have been, then."

They all smiled.

But the next week was the beginning of the Winter Vacations and they would all have to go back home for almost two weeks. Everything would change.

**Read and Review, please!**


	3. Chapter 3

**All right, next chapter! I know my portrayals of treatment of Death Eaters may seem a bit extreme, but, honestly, this is how things are. After so much violence and death, people need someone to blame. That takes priority over idolizing their heroes.**

oOo

When Rose first got home for the Holidays, her parents were a bit angry with her for not writing much. But what was she supposed to say? Oh, yeah, and by the way, I'm friends with the kids of your worst enemies? Not going to go over well. So they berated her for that, and made her promise to write more when she went back for the second term. And then all was happy again. She told Hugo all about Hogwarts, and they played games and prepared for Christmas and were a family. They didn't know yet about the sorting or about her friends or anything like that.

On the morning of December 25, they all went to the Burrow for the massive family reunion and Christmas celebration. She and Albus found each other as soon as they arrived. "My parents don't know yet. Not about me being Unsorted or anything else," Rose told Albus when they were alone.

Albus sighed. "Lucky. James dropped the bomb on mine this morning. They already knew about me being sorted into Slytherin, but not about our friends or any of that. Now they do, so you'd better get ready. My dad'll probably tell your parents soon enough."

Rose took a deep breath and steeled herself. Why did it have to be on Christmas, of all days? Her dad was going to positively _explode_. And they'd both be hurt that she hadn't told them anything… Maybe she should try to find them and tell them outright. It would be out soon enough, anyway. At least this way she could be the one to break it to them. But then everyone in the family would find out… She didn't want to be alienated here, as well. She closed her eyes. It was inevitable. At least she could control it herself.

Everyone was gathering in the yard for some lunch when Rose stood on a chair and cleared her throat. "Everyone? I have an announcement to make." She waited until they were all looking at her. "I'm sorry for not telling any of you sooner," she began, looking at her parents, "but I decided that the sorting system at Hogwarts was corrupt so I chose not to be sorted into a House. I am Unsorted. I'm also best friends with Scorpius Malfoy, Helena Nott, and Will Avery. That's all." She stepped down and had almost gotten away before the questions started.

"What do you mean Unsorted?"

"Did I hear those names right? Malfoy, Nott, and Avery?"

"Rose, what's the meaning of this?"

"Are you joking? Death Eaters?"

At that she turned around. "Listen to all of you!" They quieted down. "You don't even know them and you're judging them! I thought my own family would be different, but you're just as prejudiced as everyone else. Do you think you're better than them because your last name's Weasley? Because you're wrong. These are the nicest, most brilliant kids I've ever met and if you think you can judge them just because of something their relatives did years ago then you are in the wrong. Not them."

She expected them to feel guilty, to realize that they had done wrong. She did not expect the dark mutterings that spread through her family. "You weren't alive during the war. You don't know what it was like." Uncle George was suddenly and oddly serious as he said this. It was strange to see him like this.

"No, I wasn't," she conceded. "But the war's over now."

People were shaking their heads. "A Death Eater is always a Death Eater," Uncle Bill said, and several voiced their agreement.

Rose frowned at his logic. "But my friends aren't—"

Uncle Percy scoffed. "Your _friends_? These people are not friends. They're our enemies. They murdered thousands of people for no reason other than bloodlines. Their families have valued pure blood more than all else for centuries. Do you think that's changed? Stop deluding yourself."

She saw the family nodding and realized that they would not be convinced. They had been holding on to this hate for over twenty years. She couldn't make them let it go so easily. She just stood there until Albus pushed his way from the crowd, and, glaring, said "You're wrong." Then he grabbed her wrist and dragged her from the yard.

They walked until the Burrow was out of sight and then sat down in the tall grass of a meadow. Rose had tears in her eyes. She brushed at them furiously. "How can they be like that, Al?" she asked. "I thought that they'd be different. I really did."

Albus sighed. "I know. But everyone who was alive during the war is like that. They lost so much. It's too hard for them to forgive so easily."

Rose looked at him, wondering when he got so smart, and realized that he looked deflated. His shoulders were slumped, his eyes downcast, his skin pale. Then she realized. She knew how much he cared about living up to his name. Now all of his family knew that he was hanging out with their enemies. They'd think him a delinquent, and he would hate it. All his hopes for greatness and respect—especially from his father… she bit her lip. "Oh, Al, I'm so sorry. I didn't think about you when I did that. Now the whole family…"

He shook his head. "It was bound to happen soon, anyway. There are no secrets in the Weasley clan."

"No. I never thought about what it would do your future." Rose steeled herself. "It's all right if you want to leave the group to save face or something. We'd all understand."

Albus looked absolutely dumbfounded. "Rose! I would _never_ do that! Sure, I was a bit flighty in the beginning, but I'm not just going to abandon my friends to those people! I care about getting equality for everyone now. No _way_."

Rose smiled. "Good." She hugged them and they laughed and began making plans for when they got back to Hogwarts.

It was almost sunset before they heard calls of "Rosie?" and "Al?" throughout the area. They sighed and stood up, knowing they'd have to go back and face the consequences. They wouldn't give up their values, though. That had already been decided. Fourteen-year-old Molly, who was the closest to them yelled, "Found them!" when they stood. The other searchers descended upon the eleven-year-olds and steered them back to the Burrow.

When they got there, their respective parents grabbed them and herded them away from the crowd. They had flooed home before Rose knew what hit her.

"What were you _thinking_, Rose?" her father burst out immediately. "Do you know how embarrassing it is for the whole family to think my daughter's a Death Eater convert?"

Rose glared and opened her mouth to retaliate but her mother had already begun. "Ronald! That's not the point!" Rose looked at her hopefully as her mother turned to her. Perhaps Hermione was on their side? "Are you sure you know those kids well? We just don't want you to get hurt, sweetie."

Rose's hope withered and died. Her eyes turned to ice again. "Too late." She turned on her heel, feeling very hurt indeed, and rushed upstairs to her room. She collapsed on the bed. Her own parents! Why did it have to be this difficult? But, no. She had known deep down this would happen from the start. She just had to hold on to what she knew was right. She nodded to herself and pulled her History of Magic textbook out of her trunk. She had a test on the Goblin War when she got back and she wanted to know everything perfectly.

oOo

She confined herself to her room for the rest of the Winter Holidays, only coming out to eat and use the bathroom when she knew no one would be around. She wrote letters to her friends every day. They all (except Albus) seemed to be having a wonderful Break. Their families had small, quiet celebrations away from the rest of the wizarding world. Actually, all three of them said that their parents wanted to meet her and Al over the Summer Holidays. She wondered if she could make that happen… Albus's situation, on the other hand, was similar to her own. He was grounded and his parents had "forbade" him from keeping his friends. He scoffed at that.

And soon they were on the train back to Hogwarts. She and Al headed straight for the last compartment on the train. Helena, Scorpius, and Will were already there, laughing about some joke. Rose and Al smiled, glad to be back.

oOo

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	4. Chapter 4

**Hello, readers! So I've decided to do these "A Day in the Life" chapters for characterization of my other characters besides Rose. They won't do much for the plot but they'll reinforce the treatment the students receive and help with themes, etc. I'll probably be doing one for each year at Hogwarts and I'll switch characters each time. Enjoy and Review!**

A Day in the Life 1: Helena

Helena woke up at five in the morning to circumvent all the other Hufflepuffs. She quietly got dressed and grabbed her things, locking her trunk behind her. If she didn't, her possessions tended to disappear. She sighed and walked from the room, through the common room, and into the corridor outside. On her way, she caught sight of a painting of fruit, tickled the pear, and ducked in.

"Helly!" squeaked a voice and she was attacked with a hug.

She patted the House Elf's head, smiling. "Hello, Wibbly." She greeted the other House Elves who had gathered around, too. Her friends always laughed at the way the House Elves idolized her, but, honestly, she was just nice. Not that her friends were mean to them or anything. Helena just took the time to ask them about their lives and find out how they were doing and such. "How's Dilly doing?"

Wibbly let go and sighed, shaking her head. She took Helena over to a bed in the corner where the House Elf Dilly lay sweating under his thin blanket. She reached in her bag and pulled out a bright yellow potion in a vial. "Pepperup Potion. Rose helped me brew it. I don't think it'll heal the sickness completely but it should help." She handed Wibbly the vial.

Wibbly knelt by the bed and poured the concoction into Dilly's mouth. He blinked and sat up, steam pouring from his ears. Helena thought he still looked a bit pale but didn't argue when he stood up, hugged her, and announced happily that he could get back to work now. The other elves celebrated with them, and then Helena had to go, so she said her goodbyes and walked up to breakfast. It was now nearing six thirty and she figured that Rose, at least, would be up.

Yes, both Rose and Scorpius were up and staring at their Unsorted table looking puzzled. Well, Rose was staring at the table. Scorpius was staring at Rose. Helena hid her smile. That was beside the point, though. On the table was a very large, very pink cake. Written on it was the message, "Thank you Helly and Rose" in blue frosting. "That was fast," Helena said.

Rose started and turned to Helena. "Oh, does that mean the potion worked, Lena?"

Helena nodded and Rose smiled. They began to eat.

When Will stumbled down groggily, he asked, "Why's there a cake on the table? Did I forget someone's birthday?"

The others just laughed.

After eating, Helena walked with Rose and Scorpius to Charms. There they parted ways, each going to their respective sections of the room. The other students came in groups of twos and threes, chatting and joking happily. When Professor Chang came in to begin the class, she gently quieted them, regaining control. A couple of the boys near Helena began levitating small balls of paper at her. Helena ignored them, taking Rose's advice. If she retaliated she'd only get in trouble. _Just wait it out_, she thought to herself. _One more hour_.

She brushed the paper balls off her desk, clearing space for notes. "Miss Nott," Professor Chang burst out harshly. "Are you littering in my classroom?"

"No, I—" but she looked at the ground around her desk, which was covered in paper balls. She bowed her head.

"Detention tonight," Professor Chang mandated. "And pick those all up."

"Yes, ma'am," Helena said quietly. _Don't cry, don't cry, don't cry_. She didn't know why she still reacted so strongly to this sort of thing. It had been going on all year. She took a deep breath and bent over to pick up all of the paper balls.

"Miss Nott!"

Helena bumped her head on her desk as she sat up. "Yes, Professor?"

"Do you think you already know this material?"

"No, Professor," she said, even though she did, in fact, know the material. The group had covered it a month and a half ago.

"Then why do you feel that you don't have to pay attention? Ten points from Hufflepuff."

The other Hufflepuffs groaned and glared at Helena. Helena looked down. Rose spoke up. "Excuse me, Professor, but you just told her to pick up the paper around her desk. Did you not want her to do that?" She said it all with an overly sweet and innocent tone. Helena had to fight to hold in her laughter. Ah, Rose.

There was a miniscule pause and then, "Detention, Weasley, for cheek."

Rose sat down, triumphant. She would think that a pause was a victory. Helena finished picking up the paper and took copious notes for the rest of the class on a charm that she already knew how to cast.

When class was over they split up, Rose and Scorpius to Herbology and Helena to Defense Against the Dark Arts. As she was walking to class, she heard calls of "Death Eater" and "Scum" and several people "accidentally" bumped into her. One, a seventh year she thought, rammed into her so hard that she fell down and dropped all her things. Someone else walked over her books and stepped on her hand.

Looking at the floor to hide tears, she gathered her books together and stood up, ducking into Moaning Myrtle's bathroom to get a hold of herself. She took a deep breath and, looking in the mirror, straightened her glasses and fixed her dark hair.

Then, steeling herself, she stepped back out into the corridor. It seemed that the rest of the students had gone. Good—but, no, that probably meant that she was late for class. She rushed to class, arriving a bit late. Professor Creevey shook his head and deducted fifteen points. Albus looked at her questioningly but Helena just shook her head.

She got out her textbook and opened up to the lesson: basic defensive theory. Helena smiled, remembering when she and her friends had covered this last week. Will had been complaining about how they had to learn theory, claiming it was a waste of time. That had launched Rose into a lecture on the importance of theory but they had gotten her off on some tangent before she could finish and soon they were all laughing about something or other.

Helena was jolted from her thoughts when Professor Creevey asked, "Does anyone know the proper wand position for most beginning defensive spells?"

Helena raised her hand. She saw that Albus did the same. It was simple, really. You just held your wand parallel to your body on a diagonal, like a shield.

Professor Creevey looked around. No one else had raised their hands. "Anyone?" he asked, scanning the room again. Then he sighed. "Mr. Potter?"

Albus gave the correct answer.

Professor Creevey nodded grudgingly. No points were awarded, as they would have been for any other students. He lectured for the rest of the class.

Once they were out, Albus cornered her. "What happened before class?" he asked.

"Nothing," she said with forced cheer. "I just stopped in the bathroom for a bit."

Albus sighed, running his hands through his hair and making it even messier. "You know you can trust me, right, Helena?"

She nodded. "It wasn't really that bad," she said finally. "The usual, you know? It just got to me this time."

"All right," he said, letting it drop. "But I'm walking you to class from now on."

She didn't bother protesting and didn't really mind.

By the time they had reached the dungeons for her Potions class, Albus had to practically sprint off so that he wasn't late for Muggle Studies. Helena walked over to her cauldron and began to prepare for the lesson. They were, ironically enough, making Pepperup Potion today. She was confident that she could do it pretty well (after all, she and Rose had brewed it almost flawlessly the night before).

As Professor Smith wrote the ingredients on the board, she daydreamed a bit, wondering how the House Elves were doing. Then she put all her focus into the potion, finishing in half the allotted time. The potion bubbled a happy yellow.

She looked around the room, observing the progress of her peers. Will was nearly finished (he had observed her and Rose last night). She looked to Anna Macmillan, the Hufflepuff who shared her table. She was chopping up rosemary. Strange, since it wasn't needed for this potion. And rosemary, when mixed with Doxie eggs, which were in the potion, was highly explosive…

As Anna lifted the rosemary, Helena grabbed her arm. "You can't put that in there," she said urgently.

But Anna jerked her arm away and dropped the rosemary in the cauldron and—

BOOM.

Helena coughed, waving her hand in front of her face to get rid of the smoke.

"What happened here?" Professor Smith asked, towering over them.

Anna coughed. "The rosemary. Helena told me to put it in."

Helena blinked as the Professor looked at her. "I didn't—"

Professor Smith cut her off. "I won't tolerate excuses. This was very dangerous. You'll get a zero on this assignment and receive detention. And clean this up." He gestured to the blackened mess surrounding the area.

Helena nodded, not daring to contradict him. Anna looked a bit guilty but then seemed to shrug it off, flouncing off to talk to her friends. Helena pulled out her wand. "_Scourgify_," she muttered the charm Rose had taught her a while back and the mess was gone.

After class, she and Will walked up the stairs together. He looked at her dejected state and said, "Bad luck."

She sighed and nodded. "All day, too."

He nodded understandingly. "It's one of those?"

"Yep." They all had them sometimes. Days where all the teachers and students seemed to unite against them. Normally it was only a couple encounters a day, but sometimes… well it was almost over now.

The parted ways in the Entrance Hall, Will going to the greenhouses for Herbology and Helena to Transfiguration. She ran into Albus on the stairs. "Where are you going?" he asked. "I thought I said I was going to walk you to class from now on."

She rolled her eyes. "We'd all be late if I let you do that. We'll meet halfway."

Albus turned around and they walked the rest of the way together. Rose was already in her seat by the time they reached the class. She waved them over when she saw them. "So, detention's in the trophy room tonight," she told Helena. "We're cleaning them. Without magic."

Albus rolled his eyes. "Didn't you and Scorpius just do that last month?" he asked.

Rose nodded. "Maybe they forgot." She shrugged. "I don't really care. It's easier for us. Do you all want to come help? Helena and I can probably get it done pretty quickly on our own, but…"

"No, we'll come. It's more fun that way," Albus said. "And I need your help with that History of Magic paper anyway."

Then they all sat down before Professor Patil had a chance to assign more detentions. Today she just lectured about transfiguring dissimilar objects. Helena was glad. Usually they could get by on lecture days with minimal trouble. This proved true as none of the three in the class had any trouble that day in Transfiguration.

Afterward, Rose and Helena reported faithfully to the trophy room for their detention. After handing them toothbrushes and soap with which to wash trophies, Filch walked off, muttering something about "filthy Death Eaters". About five minutes later, Albus, Scorpius, and Will showed up with their own toothbrushes. Filch had some method to check whether or not the trophies had been washed by hand or by magic, so they had to do it his way.

But it was easy because the five of them were together and there were jokes going around and they were all laughing. Will began singing some awful Celina Warbuck song horribly off-key. Rose and Albus covered their ears, complaining about how it was as good as torture and Will feigned hurt. Soon enough they were done and they hurried down to catch the tail end of dinner.

After eating, the five of them gathered in the Room of Requirement to complete the homework for the night and begin studying the restorative properties of the Bryophyte Phylum of magical plants.

Helena yawned. "We should probably be getting back," she said. It would be just her luck today to get caught if she stayed out after curfew.

The others reluctantly got up and they all walked out in the corridor. Rose, after walking back and forth three times, waved goodbye and disappeared back into the Room of Requirement. Will and Scorpius headed upstairs to their respective towers while she and Albus walked down the main staircase together. At the bottom, they parted, she for the Hufflepuff Basement and he for the Slytherin Dungeon.

After reaching the Hufflepuff common room she went straight up to her dorm, making eye contact with no one. She changed quickly into pajamas and then collapsed on her bed, willing herself to sleep. It would not come, but she lay there anyway. Then she heard her dorm mates enter the room.

"—such an idiot," she heard one of the girls, Ellie she thought, say. "Can you believe she did that to Anna?"

There were murmurs of agreement. Then another voice, Anna's, said, "She should just go home already. Honestly, no one wants any of _them_ here."

"Why was she even allowed to be _born_?" Violet asked scathingly. "Shouldn't the Ministry have just killed her parents? And her?" The other girls made noises of assent.

Helena felt her breath catch and tears spring into her eyes. They wanted her dead? No one wanted her here? Maybe…

But then images of Rose and Albus and Scorpius and Will appeared in her mind and she dried her eyes. They, at least, wanted her. She was sure of that.

_Tomorrow will be better_, she promised herself silently, a wish upon a wish. But she could hope, right?

oOo

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	5. Chapter 5

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Things during the second term were much the same as the first. They still studied as hard as they could and, when they ran out of things to study, moved on to basic second year material. They failed everything and had Detention often. They were alienated in the dorms. Whenever one of them got locked out (which happened quite often) they would just visit Rose in the Room of Requirement and she would conjure up a larger dorm for them all.

There was one notable difference: the Weasleys. Rose didn't know what her aunts and uncles had told her cousins, but they were constantly trying to convince her and Al to "stop with their stupid rebellion and just join the family already." When that didn't work, they just bullied their friends all the harder and ignored Albus and Rose.

One night, Rose and Helena walked onto a corridor on the fourth floor to find Molly and Louis taunting Scorpius and levitating his books from his hands. He jumped to try and reach them. He blushed and looked down when he saw Rose there. "What in Merlin's name do you think you're doing?" she yelled at her cousins.

They just laughed.

She pulled out her wand and muttered, "_Finite Incantatem_," and the levitating spell dropped the books into Scorpius's arms. "Monsters," she said to her cousins. "Let's go," she told Scorpius and Helena, and stalked off down the corridor, the other two first years on her heels. When they had reached the Room of Requirement (which had been the destination all along), Rose turned and apologized, "I'm sorry. It's mine and Albus's fault that they're doing this. I understand if you want us to stop being friends." She bowed her head with guilt and shame.

Scorpius just laughed and put a hand on her shoulder. "Stop being such a drama queen, Rosie. It's nothing we haven't seen before. We can handle anything so long as we're together."

Helena nodded her agreement. Rose smiled too, and the rest of first year passed in a blur.

oOo

"Okay, so Diagon Alley on August fifteenth," Rose repeated. She and Albus knew that they wouldn't be allowed out to meet their friends' parents over the summer, but at least they could sneak in a quick meeting in Diagon Alley. The rest nodded, agreeing. "Meet in the alley next to Florean Fortescue's."

"Yep," Helena said. "Promise to write every day?" The rest agreed to that, too.

"At night, though," Albus said. "I don't want my parents to confiscate all my letters."

After making these plans and saying goodbye, the five prepared themselves and stepped from the train, parting ways.

Rose saw her parents and walked over. They enveloped her in a hug. She responded a bit stiffly. She didn't want to shut them out completely, but she also couldn't accept their prejudice. During the school year, Rose had decided that she would make this clear and then try her best to be tolerant of their behavior. While she would prefer that they agreed with her, she knew that they wouldn't. But they were still her family.

This plan proved to work fairly well. Relations were a bit strained and there was a tension now that wasn't there before, but they could at least put up the façade of a normal family. She and Hugo played Wizard's Chess and practiced Quidditch every day, even though she knew she could never be on a team (she had no House, after all.) They were still very close, because Hugo was a bit too young to know the full scale of the issue. He knew something was up, of course, but could write it off as a minor disagreement between his sister and his parents. He did not know that a full-scale ethical battle of wills was going on.

Much of the summer passed in this manner. And then August fifteenth came around. She still wasn't sure how she'd convinced her parents to make this the day of their Diagon Alley trip without arousing suspicions, but she was just glad that she had.

After buying all of their school supplies, the family decided to stop by Weasley's Wizard Wheezes just for fun. She knew that they could be in there for hours and chose this as her opportunity to make an escape. She and Al, whose family had been shopping with her own, waited until their parents and siblings were thoroughly engrossed with joke products before slipping out.

By the time they reached the alley beside Florean Fortescue's, Scorpius, Will, and Helena were already there with their families. The parents all looked rather out of place, but all five children grinned and exchange greetings and hugs when they were reunited. They were all laughing like they were back at Hogwarts in the Room of Requirement before Rose stepped forward to introduce herself and Albus. After doing so, she held out her hand to the nearest adult, a tall, platinum blond man.

He looked surprised, like he didn't know what t do with it. "Dad," Scorpius said.

The man shook himself and extended his own hand to Rose's. "Nice to meet you, Rose. I'm Draco Malfoy, Scorpius's dad. This is my wife, Astoria." She smiled prettily at Rose, greeting her as well. The introductions went around until Rose and Albus had met all the parents.

"Do you all want some ice cream?" Mr. Malfoy asked, gesturing to the ice cream parlor beside them. "My treat."

Rose looked over wistfully. "Oh, no, you don't have to—"

"Rose just accept gratefully," Scorpius said, knowing how her manners could be when she was feeling polite, which wasn't often these days.

She grinned. "All right, then, if I've got no choice. Let's go!"

After getting ice creams, the children all sat together, laughing and talking, happy to be reunited. The adults looked on with something close to awe, exchanging glances. They did not think it was possible for their children to be so easily accepted, and by a Potter and a Weasley no less! They were positively ecstatic that their children had the opportunity to be happy and didn't have to pay for their own actions during the war.

But too soon, Albus checked the time and said, "Well, Rose and I have to be getting back now. Our parents don't know where we are and we don't want to be in too much trouble."

Rose nodded and stood up. "It was really nice meeting you all," she said to the parents. Then, in a flurry of goodbyes, she and Albus left the ice cream parlor and returned to Weasley's Wizard Wheezes. They snuck in the door without their parents seeing. However…

"Where were you two?" Lily asked accusingly as she and Hugo approached their older siblings.

"We were just out with some friends," Albus said. "But, Lils, you can't tell mum and dad, okay?"

"Same goes for you, Hugo," Rose told her little brother.

The younger children looked at each other in a way that was very familiar to Rose and Albus. They had exchanged similar looks numerous times. "Fine," Lily said, "but you have to give me your dessert for the rest on the month."

Hugo nodded. "Same for you, Rosie."

Rose and Albus smiled and agreed to the bargain. It was a small price to pay for their secrecy.

oOo

Rose and Albus were heading to their usual compartment at the back of the train when two children who looked to be first years were shoved from a compartment up ahead. The girl was positively tiny, with a short brown bob. The boy was thicker set, with dark hair. Some fourth years filed in now that space was free. "Learn the social hierarchy. You're at the very bottom. So don't come back, Death Eater scum!" There was raucous laughter from within the compartment.

Rose strode forward angrily and stood in the compartment door. "What do you think you're doing, picking on first years?" she asked.

"Oh, I'm _sooo_ scared. It's the little Weasley traitor," one boy said. The rest laughed.

Rose looked livid, but Albus pulled her back, saying, "It's not worth it. Don't bother with them."

She sighed but nodded. The compartment door slammed. She extended a hand to the boy, helping him up. Albus pulled up the girl. "What's your name?" she asked.

"I'm Liam Goyle and this is Melanie Yaxley." The boy held up his chin as he said this, daring them to show disgust or disdain at the names.

They did not. "Well, if you need somewhere to sit, we can probably squeeze you in at our compartment," Albus said. "Come on." He led them back to the end of the train, Liam and Melanie following and Rose bringing up the rear.

When they opened up the compartment door, Rose said, "Look who we've found," to the other three, gesturing at Liam and Melanie.

They grinned. "I was wondering when you two would pop up," said Will. "Long time, no see."

Helena and Scorpius greeted the first years as well, and the younger children smiled.

"Wait, you all know each other?" Rose asked, surprised.

Scorpius shrugged. "Most of us do," he said. She knew that the "us" referred to children of Death Eaters.

She nodded to show that she understood and they all crammed into the compartment. It was a tight fit, but they all managed. After a few games of Exploding Snap, Liam asked, "What will we do for the sortings? I mean, I don't want to be in Slytherin, because that would just make people think we were Voldemort's lackeys or whatever. But it's not like we'd really fit in anywhere else." Melanie nodded. The older group could tell that they had been worrying about this.

Will smiled. "It's really not a big deal. Only Albus ended up in Slytherin out of all of us. There's one of us in each House, so you won't be alone. Or you could pull a Rose and not get sorted at all…" Rose blushed and smiled.

"You can do that?" Melanie asked, incredulous.

"Apparently, " Rose answered, "because I did it."

"How?" Liam was curious.

Rose smiled. "You just tell the Sorting Hat that you don't want to be sorted. And then you're Unsorted, and you'd probably end up living in the Room of Requirement like me. We get our own table at meals, but the rest of the gang always just eats at my table. It's not so bad. I don't have to deal with any of those pesky bullies in the dorms like the rest."

Liam and Melanie exchanged a look. "We want to be Unsorted," Melanie said.

Rose laughed. "Good for you!" She was pleased that she could save these children at least some of the alienation the rest had had to go through.

oOo

For the Entrance Ceremony, all the students had to sit with their respective Houses. Rose sat at her small table, feeling a bit lonely, but she knew that the others were still with her, even if they weren't actually _with_ her. A lively chatter filled the Great Hall, but five students did not speak, for they had no one to speak to.

And then the first years filed in and the sortings began. It was all very normal until Professor Longbottom called, "Goyle, Liam." The chatter quieted as he put on the Sorting Hat. There was little wait before it called out, "UNSORTED!" Exactly six people clapped as Liam made his way to Rose's table. Everyone looked a bit shocked. No doubt they had thought Rose's sorting was an aberration, a one-time thing. Now it wasn't. Rose smiled and patted Liam on the back when he sat down. He grinned back at her.

All the other student were sorted into Houses until it came to be "Yaxley, Melanie's" turn. She went up to the Hat. It deliberated hardly at all before crying, "UNSORTED!" Melanie practically skipped over to Rose's table. They all smiled conspiratorially.

With the sortings finished, the feast began. Rose eked life stories out of the younger children, learning their about their backgrounds and families. They both lived in the countryside, away from the rest of the wizarding world. Melanie had a little sister whom she loved to the extreme. Liam's father had disappeared when he was five. The stories went on.

When they went up to the Room of Requirement after the feast, Rose saw that it had grown. There was now a common area when they first walked in, with a fireplace, chairs, and desks, still in shades of white. In the back, there were two staircases, which she assumed led to the dormitories. "All right, boys to the left, girls to the right," Rose imitated a prefect, and then she and Melanie headed up the right staircase to their dorms. Behind the door was a simple room with two lacy white beds and light curtains. There were also a couple shelves, wardrobes, and mirrors.

Rose took the bed to the left since her trunk was at its foot. She yawned. "I don't know about you, but I'm beat. I'm going to bed. We'll go down to breakfast together in the morning, okay?"

Melanie nodded and Rose passed out.

**Remember, twenty reviews! Just click the lovely little button. It's right there…**


	6. Chapter 6

**Hey, next chapter! Sorry this one's a bit short… I didn't have much planned for second year. Next chapter's going to be A Day in the Life. I haven't started it yet but I'm going to tomorrow or the next day, so if you have any requests for which character (Albus, Will, or Scorpius, probably) you want it to be, please tell me in a review. Thanks for reading!**

School seemed to be going pretty well (or at least no worse than usual) when, in early October, Rose stumbled upon Melanie cowering in a corner, Liam standing protectively over her. Molly, a prefect this year, and Lucy had cornered them.

"We told you to bow, Death Eater spawn," Molly said, drawing her wand. "Bow to your superiors." Liam did not move. "Well then, I could just make you…" Lucy giggled as Molly said this.

Rose ran forward as Molly raised her wand, jumping in front of Liam as she uttered the spell. Rose felt her limbs move against her will until she was kneeling on the floor, glaring up at her cousins. "What on earth do you think you're _doing_?" she asked scathingly. "They're _eleven_. And you could be _expelled_ for cursing another student! Don't you see that they're innocent?"

Before she could continue, Molly had turned on her heel, Lucy behind her, and walked away. "Detention, the three of you," she called over her shoulder, "for insubordination."

Rose attempted to turn to the others, but realized that she was still frozen by the spell. "Would you two mind running to get one of the others for me? We'll talk when you get back."

They gave the affirmative and started off down the corridor at a run. "And be sure to stick together," she called to their retreating backs. She did not want a repeat of this. What had happened here, anyway? She'd thought that the bullying had lessened. Was this just a one-time bout? Or was there more that the others weren't telling her…

As she thought about this, Melanie and Liam hurtled back around the corner, Scorpius in tow. When he saw Rose, his eyes hardened in anger. "What happened?" he practically growled.

"Get me out of here and I'll tell you," Rose said.

"_Finite Incantatem_," he said, wand out and Rose's whole body relaxed. He extended a hand to her and she took it, standing. She stretched. Scorpius looked at her expectantly.

"All right," she said. "I walked down here and saw Molly and Lucy threatening those two. Then Molly raised her wand, and I jumped in front and ended up like that."

Scorpius nodded and the second years looked at their younger counterparts. "What happened before that?" Rose asked.

"They just cornered us and started calling us scum and Death Eaters, then started with the whole bowing thing. Then you came in." Liam sounded strangely nonchalant as he said this.

"Liam, has this happened before?" she asked.

He nodded. "Loads of times."

Scorpius did not appear surprised when she looked at him. "Why didn't anyone tell me?" she asked him quietly. She was hurt. Did they not trust her?

Scorpius bowed his head. "It's just… it's always your family. The bullies, I mean. We didn't want you and Al to jump in and save us and mess up your relationships with your cousins."

She stared at him, then said slowly, "You have to know by now that I won't consider anyone who treats people like this my _family_. You guys are closer to my family right now than my real cousins. You can tell me anything." She looked around at all of them to make sure they understood.

They nodded to show that they did.

"All right," she clapped her hands together once. "Let's go to the Room of Requirement. I have an announcement to make."

They set off.

When they reached the Room, everyone else was already there, Helena working on a Potions essay not due until halfway through November and Albus and Will practicing charms that they wouldn't learn until third year. They were all way ahead on their schoolwork, and knew it all better than any other students. She expected them to finish with OWL level studies by the end of third year. Not that they'd ever pass any of their OWLs at the rate they were going, but still.

"Everyone," she said, standing in the center of the room. "I have an announcement." They all looked at her expectantly. "All right, starting today, we're all learning defensive spells and charms."

They all looked a bit shocked. "But, you always said to never fight back," Helena said.

"I did. And I will still advocate for that in most situations. But I don't want any of you getting hurt, so if you feel like you're in danger I want you to be able to perform a basic Shield Charm and such." Rose was fairly confident about her decision. She knew her friends would only use it in dire situations. She just hoped that they would not get in trouble for using magic.

But none of them had any more objections. Will and Liam even looked excited at the prospect of learning defense.

"So," she said cheerfully. "Everyone out."

They stood up and exited the Room of Requirement and Rose began walking up and down the corridor, picturing the room that she needed. When the door appeared and she entered, it was perfect. There were books on defensive spells in one corner, and lots of open space for practice with cushions covering the floor in the rest. They began.

oOo

Rose demanded than none of them ever go anywhere alone. It was always in pairs or groups of three. There were no longer secrets. Rose saw her own cousins tormenting her friends. They rarely used magic as Molly had, but the group was prepared when they did. A Shield Charm was enough to stop all of the spells that were thrown at them. They were given detention quite often for these actions, but they were generally together, even there. In fact, even if not all of them had detention one night, the others would often sneak over to help those that did get out earlier. Their lives continued in this pattern for the rest of the year. They still were given failing grades in many of their classes, but were never moved to the remedial level (likely because the teachers did not want to see them). After finishing whatever detention they had that night, the seven would retreat the Room of Requirement until curfew, studying and laughing and learning. Sometimes they went back to their own dorms. Sometimes they just all slept in those of the Room of Requirement.

Over the Winter Holidays, Rose and Albus stayed at home on Christmas rather than having repeats of the previous year at the Burrow. They thought it was slightly ironic that the "bad" families of the age had more idyllic home lives than they, the "heroes", did.

And soon their second year was over. Rose and Al were forced to go home again, but they all promised to write every day (or, rather, every night) and meet in Diagon Alley again.


End file.
